Moliere’s centuries-old text takes its comedic cues from the exploits of Sganarelle, the frequently intoxicated stick collector who spends his days nursing (and often singing to) a bottle of wine and occasionally beating his wife.

Few playwrights could create humor and sympathy out of such a character, but the strength of MoliÃ¨re’s comedic writing helps make Sganarelle a memorable and amusing protagonist. Professor Paul McDowell gives Sganarelle a thick, booming voice to match his faux-portly figure, and an over-the-top sense of self-importance helps cement the image of this most loutish of leads.

The play opens with an angry dispute between Sganarelle and Martine (Anne Lauer), his beleaguered and oft-beaten spouse. The rapport between McDowell’s Sganarelle and Lauer’s Martine implies a humorous power struggle at the core of their relationship, with Martine criticizing his drunken gluttony and Sganarelle defending himself with roundabout “logic” and a large stick.

Lucinde has been promised by her father to an unseen and older wealthy man, and until Leandre’s miniscule fortune can compete, the two are doomed. That is, until Sganarelle decides to get himself involved.

The production’s energy and sense of humor undoubtedly came from the students. From Dorwart’s Lucas, who stomps and hops across each scene, to Miller’s gibberish mutterings as Lucinde pretends to be mute, the cast’s care and dedication to the production shone through.

As the case may often be with performances held in the Philbin Theater, the set itself was essentially nonexistent, with little but a stool and a pile of sticks to stand for forests and houses alike.

With the colorful costumes and animated performances, however, such a stark set allowed the focus of the production to be on both the players themselves and the humor of their speech.

The continued strength and success of each year’s performance is, according to McDowell, due to none other than the students themselves.

“It’s all because of what the students find in each other,” McDowell said at the end of Sunday afternoon’s final performance. “It’s what they find in a playwright who hasn’t graced this earth in over 300 years.”